Yes. However, most of the PHP scripts sold here on Envato are small and lightweight. Hopefully in the future Envato will fix this seeing as PHP work can be quite time consuming.

I think applications like Clivo, QuickTick – The Deployable Helpdesk, Client Works, PHP Login & User Management, ThumbsUp and others are way under priced, these applications aren’t really “small” / “lightweight” if you look what you can do with them. And the time it costs to develop such an application in comparison with a HTML template or a WordPress theme.

I just don’t understand how an HTML template can be $15 and a fully working help desk system like the one I typed above only costs $12….

I just don’t understand how an HTML template can be $15 and a fully working help desk system like the one I typed above only costs $12….

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that the vast majority of users who come here aren’t looking for php scripts? I mean, if 75% of the people who come here to buy something are coming to buy a site template, then common sense says that the site templates will be more expensive so as to maximize revenue.

Yes. However, most of the PHP scripts sold here on Envato are small and lightweight. Hopefully in the future Envato will fix this seeing as PHP work can be quite time consuming.

I think applications like Clivo, QuickTick – The Deployable Helpdesk, Client Works, PHP Login & User Management, ThumbsUp and others are way under priced, these applications aren’t really “small” / “lightweight” if you look what you can do with them. And the time it costs to develop such an application in comparison with a HTML template or a WordPress theme.

I just don’t understand how an HTML template can be $15 and a fully working help desk system like the one I typed above only costs $12….

I just don’t understand how an HTML template can be $15 and a fully working help desk system like the one I typed above only costs $12….

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that the vast majority of users who come here aren’t looking for php scripts? I mean, if 75% of the people who come here to buy something are coming to buy a site template, then common sense says that the site templates will be more expensive so as to maximize revenue.

Or, maybe I’m just cookoo

So what do they have to lose when they increase the prices for php applications.

While I sympathize with the developers of such applications and being a PHP developer myself, I want to say that you guys are half right.

Prices are usually not determined by the length of time it takes to develop a script. Prices are set by supply and demand and market price.

1) How can I charge $500 for my script when everyone else is charging $12 for similar work?

2) If people aren’t going to buy them for $500, I am forced to go down to $12.

Point is, if you want to shift the prices to a point where you expect them to be, don’t lower them. Same goes for custom freelance projects. You should never lower your price just to get the contract. That lowers the perceived quality of your service and the industry’s, because next thing you know you’ll be charging $12 for a script that took a week to build.

I have lost many projects because I wouldn’t cut my hourly rate in half, but you know what? I have also landed some and those that I have landed made up for those that I have lost. What does that give me? Less work for the same (or greater) pay!

While I sympathize with the developers of such applications and being a PHP developer myself, I want to say that you guys are half right.

Prices are usually not determined by the length of time it takes to develop a script. Prices are set by supply and demand and market price.

1) How can I charge $500 for my script when everyone else is charging $12 for similar work?

2) If people aren’t going to buy them for $500, I am forced to go down to $12.

Point is, if you want to shift the prices to a point where you expect them to be, don’t lower them. Same goes for custom freelance projects. You should never lower your price just to get the contract. That lowers the perceived quality of your service and the industry’s, because next thing you know you’ll be charging $12 for a script that took a week to build.

I have lost many projects because I wouldn’t cut my hourly rate in half, but you know what? I have also landed some and those that I have landed made up for those that I have lost. What does that give me? Less work for the same (or greater) pay!

My $0.02.

I totally with your last two paragraphs, but feel the need to correct an underlying assumption.

I will agree that labor does not equal value (The great Adam Smith got this wrong). For example, I could spend a month creating a php application that deleted itself every time it was run. Where would the value be? Value is in the mind and the preferences of those who associate value with a product.

However, we do not set the price. In fact, the consumer do not even set the price. ThemeForest does. This resembles more of a monopoly than an actual free-market. I have had at least two dozen people emailing me saying they would have paid upwards of $100 for Clivo.

The minimum amount that can be deposited into ThemeForest account is $20.00. Basically, if someone wants to buy my Application, they actually pay $20, and Envato keeps the extra $5, until the buyer realizes they have another $5 left. At the same time, they do not collect interest on that money, Envato does.

All I am contending is that the pricing structure of ThemeForest create a disequilibrium in prices, which hurts the author, and any incentive for me to upkeep my applications.

Hey guys. We’re aware of some of the pricing issues. Originally, we were expecting more “drag and drop” type scripts; but we quickly realized that we’re receiving some fairly advanced components. Rest assured that it’s being worked on. I’ll make an announcement on the subject next month.

While I sympathize with the developers of such applications and being a PHP developer myself, I want to say that you guys are half right.

Prices are usually not determined by the length of time it takes to develop a script. Prices are set by supply and demand and market price.

1) How can I charge $500 for my script when everyone else is charging $12 for similar work?

2) If people aren’t going to buy them for $500, I am forced to go down to $12.

Point is, if you want to shift the prices to a point where you expect them to be, don’t lower them. Same goes for custom freelance projects. You should never lower your price just to get the contract. That lowers the perceived quality of your service and the industry’s, because next thing you know you’ll be charging $12 for a script that took a week to build.

I have lost many projects because I wouldn’t cut my hourly rate in half, but you know what? I have also landed some and those that I have landed made up for those that I have lost. What does that give me? Less work for the same (or greater) pay!

My $0.02.

I totally with your last two paragraphs, but feel the need to correct an underlying assumption.

I will agree that labor does not equal value (The great Adam Smith got this wrong). For example, I could spend a month creating a php application that deleted itself every time it was run. Where would the value be? Value is in the mind and the preferences of those who associate value with a product.

However, we do not set the price. In fact, the consumer do not even set the price. ThemeForest does. This resembles more of a monopoly than an actual free-market. I have had at least two dozen people emailing me saying they would have paid upwards of $100 for Clivo.

The minimum amount that can be deposited into ThemeForest account is $20.00. Basically, if someone wants to buy my Application, they actually pay $20, and Envato keeps the extra $5, until the buyer realizes they have another $5 left. At the same time, they do not collect interest on that money, Envato does.

All I am contending is that the pricing structure of ThemeForest create a disequilibrium in prices, which hurts the author, and any incentive for me to upkeep my applications.

Agreed.

I was mostly speaking in general terms, inclusive of ThemeForest. I didn’t know that they set the prices either, however from their perspective I could see their reasoning. They want a competitive advantage. I may have done the same, but then the responsibility falls on the developer. If you’re fully aware that ThemeForest charges prices that are too low in your book, then I can’t see a reason for you to submit your software here. People can’t knowingly accept terms and then argue to change them. If ThemeForest hid the pricing structure from the public and then somehow mislead them then that would be a different story.

It does hurt me to see software that is well written to be so undervalued. Programming is not always an easy task and requires non-stop focus, but I firmly believe that the market sets the prices. Again, if you want to charge $12 and people are paying for it then that is what it costs, as upsetting as that is to me. Anything else is artificial.